


A resolution to reinstate the Senate dress code passed in the chamber unanimously Wednesday night, following more than a week of Republican backlash against the decision to drop the standards.
Lawmakers in the chamber will be required to wear business attire, including coats, ties, and slacks for men, and dresses and suits for women, as a result of the resolution introduced last week by Senators Joe Manchin and Mitt Romney. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer revoked the informal rules earlier this month after Democratic senator John Fetterman routinely started showing up in casual garb such as hoodies and basketball shorts.
“Though we’ve never had an official dress code, the events over the past week have made us all feel as though formalizing one is the right path forward,” Schumer said on the chamber floor Wednesday.
In response to the restoration of the formal dress code, Fetterman released a statement consisting only of a photo of Kevin James as the character Doug Heffernan in the hit sitcom, The King of Queens, according to NBC News.
Republican senator Chuck Grassley, who railed against the initial relaxation of the dress code, wrote on X after the final vote came down: “Senate dress code is restored passing senate unanimously 2nite Thankfully Sen Schumer’s unprecedented decision was overruled by the will of the senate. God bless COMMON SENSE.”
Last week, a group of 46 GOP senators led by Senator Rick Scott demanded in a letter that Schumer bring back the expectation of style decorum. The letter, without mentioning Fetterman, affirmed that the rules change disrespected and undermined the institution of the Senate. A chorus of Republicans condemned the change, with Senator Susan Collins (R., Maine) joking with reporters that she could now “wear a bikini” on the Senate floor.
Fetterman said earlier Wednesday that the whole drama was a nothing-burger, as he planned to dress formally whenever inside the chamber anyway.
“I continue to vote from the door, and when I ever speak on the floor, I was always going to wear a suit,” Fetterman told Insider. “So this is just a non-issue.”